Does GURPS need original-setting world books?

[JMason]

It would be interesting to see the sales data for Savage Worlds' books. SW reminds me of the GURPS 3rd ed. era with one book of basic rule and the detail for specific settings in the world books.

Of course I am glad that GURPS 4ed moved away from rules everywhere, but OTOH, all those shinny SW hardback settings are very tempting....

[Xplo]

Originally Posted by JMason

It would be interesting to see the sales data for Savage Worlds' books. SW reminds me of the GURPS 3rd ed. era with one book of basic rule and the detail for specific settings in the world books.

Of course I am glad that GURPS 4ed moved away from rules everywhere, but OTOH, all those shinny SW hardback settings are very tempting....

I'd expect a Savage Worlds setting to be pretty easy to adapt to GURPS.

[maximara]

Originally Posted by pawsplay

You will never have trouble selling small buckets of awesome. The trick, of course, is figuring out a method of reliably producing them.

I take it you never followed the link and read the article regarding the small buckets. The problem was that creating all the small buckets didn't really improve the amount of cash TSR was getting but the cost of maintaining all those small buckets had major bad effects on the profits.

[Collective_Restraint]

Originally Posted by maximara

I take it you never followed the link and read the article regarding the small buckets. The problem was that creating all the small buckets didn't really improve the amount of cash TSR was getting but the cost of maintaining all those small buckets had major bad effects on the profits.

Don't forget that TSR created a bundle of small buckets which was the problem. We are talking about building a single generic Mystara, Forgotten Realms, GreyHawk-like fantasy setting and others have also suggested building Space Opera and Horror settings. I'd agree with you if we would be talking about multiple fantasy settings.

[Dwarfolo]

Originally Posted by Icelander

Why not? I like sopressata.

I like soPPressata too :-P

I agree with Icelander.
There's a big degree of modularity in this 4th Edition, and you can safely ignore those rules that you don't want to use.
And I think that an unexperienced DM can't do with out-of-the-box D&D rules much more than what can do an equally unexperienced GM with GURPS.

[blacksmith]

Originally Posted by Collective_Restraint

Don't forget that TSR created a bundle of small buckets which was the problem. We are talking about building a single generic Mystara, Forgotten Realms, GreyHawk-like fantasy setting and others have also suggested building Space Opera and Horror settings. I'd agree with you if we would be talking about multiple fantasy settings.

Don't also forget that TSR had at least several times the sales that GURPS currently does.

[robertsconley]

Originally Posted by maximara

I take it you never followed the link and read the article regarding the small buckets. The problem was that creating all the small buckets didn't really improve the amount of cash TSR was getting but the cost of maintaining all those small buckets had major bad effects on the profits.

I am not talking about making more buckets but making a bucket that attracts players of the most popular rpg out there. The rest of the GURPS line can be continued as it always has. This is in ADDITION not instead of the main GURPS Line.

[robertsconley]

Originally Posted by Dwarfolo

I like soPPressata too :-P

And I think that an unexperienced DM can't do with out-of-the-box D&D rules much more than what can do an equally unexperienced GM with GURPS.

I have watched and talked to people that tried both. D&D is far easier to get going with it current setup than GURPS. Third party games like Savage World, Castle & Crusades, etc are even faster at getting their players and GMs going.

[Ze'Manel Cunha]

Originally Posted by robertsconley

I have watched and talked to people that tried both. D&D is far easier to get going with it current setup than GURPS. Third party games like Savage World, Castle & Crusades, etc are even faster at getting their players and GMs going.

There is something to be said for "opening a box", taking out the parts and being able to start playing a game right away, without giving it any other thought beforehand.

That may be a somewhat alien concept to many GURPS GMs, but playing games right "out of the box" has a much broader mass market appeal than our own niche preferences for using the tools from the GURPS box to cobble together our own unique games.

Can GURPS be made to be played "out of the box"?
Yes.

Is it worth doing that?
Maybe, but it'd take the effort of both a writer and editor who would not be able to dedicate as much time to other products which sell to the current market, while questing for a new market.

I figure they could do it in one of two ways:

• 1) Full Bore, imagine the likes of David Pulver, Bill Stoddard and Kromm spending most of a year getting something like that going, costing SJGames over $100k to develop, market, and publish the setting, foregoing their normal 2 books a year and not marketing much to their toolkit customers during the process and running the risk that the setting isn't popular.
  
  
• 2) Secondary emphasis, imagine grooming some e23 writers to put together a few different settings, wasting only a couple of $k in editorial time and costs, see which ones are popular, expand those to POD when they hit certain benchmarks and then expand them to mass market "game in a box" products.

[knarf]

Originally Posted by tantric

Actually, no. Banestorm isn't fantasy - it's alternate history. For many people, it's utterly useless as an escapist experience. The last thing I want to experience in a fantasy world is Christian/Muslim conflict.

So, why can't we just start a new thread and throw out some ideas? "Do not try, DO. There is no try!"

While it does have historical elements, it is designed as a fantasy setting complete with elves and orcs.

If you don't like the religious aspects, set your adventures in Cardiel, where it's perfectly legal to have any religion you choose. While the book talks mainly about existing religious sects, there's no reason that totally made up gods that you imported from Greyhawk or FR can't be there.